Frisco seeks locals’ help directing town’s future

The town of Frisco is inviting residents to a County Plan Kickoff event at 5:30 p.m. today at the Frisco Adventure Park Day Lodge.Special to the Daily / Todd Powell

If you go

What: The Community Plan Kickoff

When: 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 11

Where: the Frisco Adventure Park Day Lodge, 621 Recreation Way

Info: Town staff are looking for community feedback as they start crafting a new Community Plan.

Town officials are hoping for a strong turnout July 11 as they seek the community’s feedback for a new long-range plan that’s supposed to help guide Frisco for years to come.

The community plan is much like other town’s master or comprehensive plans, said town planner Susan Lee, explaining that it is a valuable tool that helps decision-makers make proactive choices about what’s best for Frisco now and for the next 20 years.

The document can shape public policy, encourage or discourage various types of development, and direct capital improvements by setting up a framework for ensuring Frisco’s future is consistent with the community’s vision and values, Lee said.

What makes Frisco special? What is it about Frisco that people love so much? And perhaps more important, what in Frisco is worth protecting? Those are just a few of the overarching questions Lee thinks could come up during the forum.

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The town would love to see every possible community member attend the event. The goal of the meeting is to bring people together and share ideas while finding out what people love and value most about Frisco.

“We’re really trying to get a general, big-picture view, but we plan on picking (locals’) brains about what things do (they) want to see change, too,” Lee said, adding that these could be issues like a lack of economic diversity, the high cost of living, pedestrian and bike transportation, parking, tourism, environmental preservation, traffic or congestion, climate change, fire prevention, development and growth or the mix of second homeowners compared to year-round residents.

The town adopted its last community plan in 2011. But a lot has changed since then, and with major retail developments, a new workforce housing project and projects going on in and along the downtown core, town staff feels like it’s time for an update.

The Community Plan Kickoff will be at 5:30 p.m. at the Frisco Adventure Park Day Lodge, 621 Recreation Way, and town staff are trying to make it fun and full of interactive activities, all designed to help facilitate a lively discussion about Frisco’s future, with Food Hedz providing catering and a free beer, glass of wine or beverage. Children are welcome.

Lee isn’t sure how many people might attend the kickoff party, but if they have 100-150 that would be a great start. “We’re hoping we get a lot of good feedback,” she said, “so we can get things started in the right direction.”

If everything goes according to schedule, Lee said the town should have another large public workshop sometime this fall, while continuing to refine and development the plan — adding in things like steps for its implementation and action items — before submitting a finalized draft of the plan to town council for adoption in the early spring.

If someone can’t make the kickoff and still wants to participate in the process, a project website, FriscoCommunityPlan.com, has been created so people can stay up to date on events and opportunities for input. Lee said information gleaned from tomorrow’s event will be added soon.

“It’s a pretty broad-reaching meeting, but it’s just the kickoff,” Lee said. “From this meeting, we’re hoping some of those things will flow to the surface, and those are the ones we’re going to drill into deeper for upcoming community conversations and focus group meetings.”

The website also contains links to a survey and meeting materials so if citizens have missed something, they may still follow along with the planning process. For more, people should visit the project website or contact Lee at 970-668-2559 or via email at SusanL@townoffrisco.com.

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